The Mike Janzen Trio performed to a full house on Friday, October 26th at our OPENING SEASON CONCERT! The Toronoto-based group included Mike Janzen on piano and vocals, George Koller on bass and Larnell Lewis on drums. They received a standing ovation from the audience - it was a remarkable show. Multi-talented Mike Janzen is a songwriter, composer and musician, and the evening included songs like "Secret Crush," inspired by Jodi - his summer camp crush turned wife - and "If I Only Had a Brain." For part of the Wizard of Oz classic, Mike wore oven mitts. He said, "When I wouldn't practice, my piano teacher would tell me it sounded like I was playing with oven mitts on. So when I was an adult, I wondered what that would actually sound like."

Also - a big congratulations to Stan Doerksen, our Best Seats in the House winner. Stan won two tickets to the show by calling into AM 1250 the Friday morning of the show. Besides the best seats, Stan also received a signed program and event poster, and flowers. You can win Best Seats in the House by calling into AM 1250 the Friday morning before our next show!

We were pleased to have Mike Janzen host two workshops - one with the high school students at SRSS, and one at the Cultural Arts Centre. Mike lived in Steinbach for much of his childhood, and fit right in with our local music teachers and students at the 'Starting to Improvise on the Piano' workshop on October 29th. Mike shared valuable tips and techniques on composition and how to break music down into small parts and work with scales. Mike also mentored students and teachers in one-on-one sessions where he spent some time listening to them perform.

It was a great privilege to work with Mike and his bandmates. Mike is a very good-natured, easy-going and TALENTED person. Thanks for a great show! And a great workshop!

The house was filled with rich jazzy music while a lady contentedly sketched in the background and a group of men in the kitchen talked about a range of things from art to hunting. People laughed and talked, met new people and enjoyed the music and art.

This month's Art Stream Open House was also a blast, yet totally different from the previous one. This time it was held on a Friday night and there was almost an entirely different crowd. Around 25 in all. At seven o'clock I was wondering where everybody was, while at the same time I was glad I could quickly finish cleaning up before people started coming. Soon enough people started streaming in, helping themselves to refreshments and chatting, meeting up with old friends, neighbours and developing brand new relationships and connections.

One eleven year old girl who came was inspired to do a painting. "I don't have a lot of time to paint lately," she said, "because of school and other activities." We got her some paints, an easel and a canvas and she went to town painting a bright red sky with a pink textured ground, and finished it off with a blue hand print in the sky. It was fun to watch how free she was in her painting expression, all the while the band played in the background.

Shauna Hart started off singing her song "A Mother's Heart" which was written for the Friesen family, who's two year old son Cash is dealing with brain cancer. People were were touched by that song in particular. We all appreciated and enjoyed the music and many expressed their appreciation of Shauna's beautiful voice and the talented musicians. Later on in the evening a friend sang along and I made a shaker instrument out of my porcelain pomegranate by filling it with uncooked macaroni and joined in with the band as well.

One family stayed long past what they intended, "This place has such a restful atmosphere," the husband said as he leaned back into the couch, "I don't even want to leave." Most people left after ten, while a few stayed and talked until 12:30am.

Did you know that some of the art displayed in the Loewen Art Green SCene has never been publicly displayed before? At first I was surprised to hear that so many gifted artist's were quite hesitant to display their art. But as I thought about it, it made sense to me. A person's art is an expression of something inside of them. It is putting a voice to something that would otherwise be left unheard. It is putting your heart on display for the world to critique. That can be a very scary thing.

Here is a safe place for emerging artists to bring their art and know that it will be appreciated for it's uniqueness. I believe one artist's work should not be compared to another artist's work. Really, every work of art is extremely unique and personal. One should only be comparing what they did today to what they did last month or last year, and from there work to improve themselves.

To all the hidden artist's out there, consider bringing a piece of your art to display at the Loewen Green Art Scene, and let your unique voice be heard!
And make sure you join our 'Art Scene' Facebook page - share links and ideas with other artists, upload photos to critique one another's work and find out about upcoming opportunities with the Arts! Just type 'Art Scene' into the search bar on your Facebook account (choose the one with the 306 Reimer Address).

The 9th Annual Expressions: Exploring Recovery Through Art event went ahead on October 5, 2012 despite the snow and cold! Approximately 80 people attended at the Steinbach Cultural Arts Centre to enjoy poetry, music and art by people who have used art to assist in their recovery from a mental health problem such as depression, anxiety, bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, or obsessive compulsive disorder. Steinbach City Counsellor Earl Funk, Chris Summerville, CEO of the Schizophrenia Society of Canada and Kim Heidinger, Outreach Worker for Manitoba Schizophrenia Society spoke during the opening ceremony. Guests were treated to hors d’oeuvres from Homestyle Catering and mini cupcakes from PS Cake Designs. The exhibit which includes artwork from the Out of the Blue campaign from the Southern Regional Health Authority and collages from Word Art workshops will be on display until November 9, 2012.

On Sunday, September 30th, audiences enjoyed an evening of uplifting sacred songs and spirituals at the Grace Mennonite Church - featuring baritone David Klassen, Robert Neufeld on piano and the EMCA Vespers Choir directed by Millie Hildebrand.

Over a dozen artists submitted an amazing variety of paintings for our first Art Stream Open House, including two beautifully sculpted wooden tables, a sample of pop art portraiture, abstract art, elephants, flowers, cartoons, and prophetic art to specify just a few of the many pieces. The event was held at the Loewen Green Art Scene - my new home. I must say I sure enjoy looking at all this art every day.

At seven o'clock sharp people started streaming in. As the musicians were setting up, guests were invited to jam. A nine year old boy took the opportunity to share his drumming talents along with two others who noodled on their guitars together. A number of guests came through specifically to look at the art, while others stayed for the coffee and music, making new connections and sharing their portfolios. There were a lot of good conversations going on in all corners of the house, even in the middle of the stairwell. Everyone really seemed to enjoy themselves.

A number of people were interested in specific works of art and took pictures and contact info. One painting was sold to a gentleman visiting from Alberta. The turquoise glittery painting that sold had Hebrew letters that spelled out "Hope" and was painted by artist Andrea Yaremko.

Singer and Song writer Shauna Hart came and sang and played guitar with her newly formed band. A beautiful jazzy rendition of 'Just a Closer Walk with Thee' filled the house. She also sang some of her original songs, and this was her first debut in performing her touching song "A Mother's Heart" which was written for 2 year old Cash Friesen and his family. Cash has been diagnosed with brain cancer. Without fail, I tear up when I hear Shauna's angelic voice singing this heartfelt song.

The coffee was good. Even the decaf. Thanks to 10,000 Villages for donating a bag of coffee. And thank you to the people who gave donations which covered some of the costs.

Thanks to SAC for connecting us with artists and the public and for supplying dainties, tags and other efforts to make this a great event.

Thank you to the artists and musicians who so generously shared their talents to an appreciative audience.

Thanks to my Mom who worked all day with me to get the house set up, and to my husband for organizing the music and welcoming random musicians to jam with the band.

Thanks to everyone who supported us and helped out and who showed up. We had a great time, and a very positive turnout of over 30 people plus a few children who were welcomed and played together upstairs with our boys and kitten.

It was a casual and enjoyable evening, and we are looking forward to the next one!

Sat, Sept 8 was a very eventful day at Cinema in the City.
At 3pm, Steinbach's first-ever community-wide Amazing Race kicked off at 3pm. Twelve teams participated in fun challenges around town. Here are some of the challenges:
Locate a car in a parking lot with the clue on the windshield
Find a lady dressed in Mennonite costume in the gallery at Mennonite Heritage Village
Dress in water wings and goggles and complete a challenge at Urban Life
Purchase a non-perishable item from Sobeys and donate it to Southeast Helping Hands
Pick up a rose at Heier Designs Florist and deliver it to a senior at Woodhaven Manor
Find “Waldo,” who was dressed in a red and white striped shirt and toque like the “Where’s Waldo?” books
Just like on TV, there were several detours teams could choose between –
Live Action Role Playing (as directed by the Steinbach LARPers Society)
Painting an autumn scene (with local artist Colleen Watchorn)
Teams also sang a song for the staff and patrons at Sawney Beans.
The final pit stop was AD Penner Park where teams had to reach the winner’s mat. The winning team, Grumpy Bears, completed the Race in just over an hour. They received a free hot tub rental from Urban Life, a $50 Niakwa Pizza gift card, two free rentals from Video Max and a bouquet of flowers from Heier Designs Florist.
The second place team, clocking in at 1 hour, 17 mins – just three minutes after Grumpy Bears – was El Chupacabra (Lizards) who won a $50 gift card from Sawney Bean, a gift basket from Video Max, and four free classes from the Steinbach Cultural Arts Centre.
The Incredibles team in their black tights and masks – also winning the ‘best costume’ award – placed third and received a Video Max gift basket and $50 Sawney Beans gift card, along with four Livery Barn coupons from MHV for best costume.
Big thanks to Video Max, LBees, Studios on Main Photography and Steinbach Aquatic Centre for great prizes that were awarded to those teams who took part in the optional photo challenges.
Amazing Race participants enjoyed hot dogs and smokies at the Steinbach Arts Council Charity BBQ, which was also open to the community in support of the Creative Arts Bursary Fund, which provides program assistance to families with financial challenges.
Along with great food, there were lots of fun workshops for the public to enjoy from 5:00-7:30pm under the shelter at AD Penne Park – line dancing with Debra Ward from The Dance Floor, a Hawaiian Hula workshop by Eddie from XCOMPANY Physical Arts Training School, and a drumming workshop by Coffieman’s African Dance Studio.

The Pioneer Days Parade is an event we look forward to every year. This year's S.A.C. float was designed by Summer Arts Day Camps director Taniya Dyck and assistant directors Eleya Dyck and Shayli Patrick. Our float was a garden filled with bugs... the kids had big nets and painted faces, and we even had a few larger-than-life bugs. Our Summer Arts Day Camps kids had a great time waving at the crowd as we drove by. The Creative Youth Council also walked with us, dressed like they were ready to go on a journey and handing out flyers for the Amazing Race coming up on Sept 8! See more on our website www.steinbachartscouncil.ca.

Bearing martial arts tools such as swords and even a whip, XCOMPANY also accompanied the float, handing out some great discount coupons. They will be with us on Wed, Aug 29th at Registration Day here at the Centre. We hope to see a lot of people out!

This year's parade went really well - the float looked great and the kids had fun. It's so exciting to see the excitement of the people that line up on the street to watch the parade, especially the kids who are oh-so-eager to collect as many tasty treats as possible. We were so blessed to have another float toss freezes to our campers at the end of the parade.
Thanks to all who participated, and we hope to see a lot of our valued Arts patrons at the Centre before August 16th to take advantage of the discount coupons we distributed with the candy we gave out at the Parade. For those who did not receive any coupons, they are also available on our website.

Battle of the Bands on Fri, June 1st was a huge success - with five great bands - Secret Sins to Dust, Forever More, Silent Amber, Margot and 3rd Pew. The Creative Youth Council and Katimavik volunteers partnered up in providing a fun trivia with prizes for guests to enjoy, did face painting and also made sure people knew when their orders were coming up. Bumpers provided some free coupons for ice cream treats and turned out to be a great venue with lots of space for the large number of supporters who came out to enjoy the music, food and activities.

We'd like to thank the community of Steinbach and surrounding towns who came out to support local youth at this epic event. We're expecting a lot more great events from our Creative Youth Council, who will also be on-site in the ART ZONE during the Summer in the City Festival, June 15 & 16. The ART ZONE is located in the Main Stage compound.

Our Battle of the Bands winners 3rd Pew will also be at Summer in the City, performing on the Prudential Main Stage at 3:40pm on Saturday afternoon. Margot, one of the other Battle of the Bands contestants, will also be performing on the Main Stage - Friday afternoon at 3:45pm.

My coworker and I went for a walk around lunch time last week... We wanted to check out the new Loewen Green Art Scene. It's just off Main Street, on the corner of Elmdale Drive and Reimer Ave.

When we got there, I was taken with how enchanting the house is! It looks great, and Steinbach Arts Council has filled both storeys with art, and they have artists painting inside the house. That day it was an artist I recognized from around the community, Debbie Giesbrecht. She had her granddaughter with her, dressed in a painting smock, and the two were painting side by side! It was adorable! What a great way to bond with your granddaughter.

We also enjoyed some farmer sausage fresh off the barbeque at the Frank in Stein hot dog stand. They've set up right on the yard, and there are lots of picnic tables to sit at. After all this, we sauntered off down the street and ended up in the Jake Epp Library to check it out now that the renovations are done. It looks great! I loved the cloud installations on the blue ceiling, and the animal pillows for the kids.

All this, and just over our lunch hour! It was the ultimate Steinbach experience.

The Summer in the City Festival is Steinbach's most fun and entertaining way to celebrate another summer solstice! This year's Festival featured an Artists in the City Courtyard, with professional landscaping, a soothing fountain and bistro tables. Ten artists were on site painting in acrylics and watercolor, creating stained glass and expertly moulding clay on a potter's wheel. The Culture in the City tents were a huge success, with exciting food and enterntainment from cultures around the world. Our local performers did an amazing job on the Prudential Main Stage, whether it was raining or sunny - and crowds enjoyed headliners Doc Walker and Burton Cummings Band.

I was involved with the Kid's Mural where children could leave their artistic mark by painting a tile - the mural looks awesome and will be on display at the Arts Council. The Arts Council also had a "50/50 Here!" Fundraiser, with proceeds going to programming at your local community Arts Centre. It was a great success - thank you to everyone who volunteered and participated in making this year's Festival an all-around success.

I was especially excited to see activities happening in the Main Stage Compound - it was perfect for parents and grandparents who wanted to enjoy the performers on stage! The kids could participate in fun water games and relays while parents enjoyed the food and entertainment. The Creative Youth Council did such a great job in coming up with activities for not only kids, but teens and youth as well. There was Door Art, Funky Fences and Origami... whenever I came to see what was going on, there were always groups of kids and youth who looked like they were having an amazing time participating in these activities. Katimavik youth volunteers also helped to make this portion of the Festival flow smoothly and provide help in a number of areas including set up and the ART ZONE. A huge thanks to this amazing group!

Steinbachonline.com is Steinbach's only source for community news and information such as weather and classifieds.

About the Steinbach Arts Council

The Steinbach Arts Council, an umbrella organization for performing and visual arts groups, enriches the lives of our community through development of local artists and musicians and exposure to professional art forms. The Steinbach Cultural Arts Centre is a home for all these groups and their programs. It’s purpose is to create an environment where all arts disciplines can work together under one roof and share their resources and their talents with each other, and the entire Arts Community!

When the City of Steinbach and Southeastern Manitoba want local news, weather, and sports online and on-demand, they turn to Steinbach Online. As Steinbach Manitoba's website for local job listings, free classifieds, garage sales, family events, business directory and weather cancellations, Steinbach Online makes it worth the trip.